Water Clarity

This is a discussion on Water Clarity within the Beginner Freshwater Aquarium forums, part of the Freshwater Fish and Aquariums category; -->
I'm in the process of Cycling my 55 Gal , coming up on the third week. Since Im planning on keeping Cichlids, i bought ...

I'm in the process of Cycling my 55 Gal , coming up on the third week. Since Im planning on keeping Cichlids, i bought a Fluval 406 Cannister Filter which is rated for tanks up to 100 Gal. This thing really moves lots of water. I keep it at maybe 20-25% open and still get a good ciruclationin my tank. I notice tiny tiny airbubbles throughout the water column....and was wondering if this is the sole reason my tank water looks pretty clear byt not quite 100% clear. Looking from the side (end to End) its still a bit hazy. Should I try putting in new Cleaning pads in the filter that are supposed to help clear up the water? (I rinsed them out last time I took the filter apart to check something The charcoal bags rest on them and had some of the dust in them. ) Reduce the flow rate on the Canister Filter?

I also have a Topfin 60 on the back of the tank from having the tank set up previously.

If there are no live plants, the various pads (carbon, "polishing," etc) in a canister are fine to use. Recognize that some of the initial cloudiness is probably a bacterial bloom, and this has to clear on its own. But if there is particulate matter in the water, the filter pads will help.

I wouldn't rinse them unless they are getting clogged; rinsing filter media usually results in cloudy water for a day or two, so this will only make it worse. But more importantly, if the water is still flowing through the media as it is meant to, leave them.

We sometimes think of a filter as a device that merely traps particulates, when in fact it is much, much more. A host of bacteria (much more than N2 bacteria) take up residence in the filter media and work to break down organic matter. The water flow through the filter also expedites the erosion and reduction process. Also, as the filter 'plugs' with organics, even smaller particles are trapped and decompose. For these reasons, we are best served not servicing the filter before it really needs it. It is also helpful to use very fine floss or pad(s) as the last stage of the filter to polish the water before it returns to the tank.
Now, as the decomposition of organic matter continues, dissolved organic compounds result that can result in less than crystal clear water. I have had success using Seachem Purigen to adsorb dissolved organics.
Also, not to be overlooked is the bacteria bloom that may result if/when a water change is performed or when overfeeding has happened. Usually this clears up in a few days.
Finally, one should not overlook the power of plants, even floating, to aid in the purification of water to crystal clarity.

I did some more searching on the forum and found that the slight cloudiness could just be due my tank still only in the third week of the cycleing phase. I plan on adding a few floating water sprite once the tank has cycled before putting in fish. I currently have the filterfloss/pads in the top tray, with 4 charcoal media bags (2 in the tray below, and two sit on the filter floss pads in the top tray before the water exits.

What about the tiny microscopic airbubbles...could this be a contributing factor to the clarity of the water?